Spalling bricks in inglenook

[tobydog]

There has been quite a bit of discussion here as to how best preserve bricks that are crumbling / spalling. In the inglenook I have about 4 or 5 in one corner that are almost half gone and going further. I know for a fact that this is a legacy of the cement render that we have since removed. I decided to check them with one of those standard pronged damp meters and the bad ones went off the scale. This compared to healthy bricks right next to them that registered nothing.

Clearly these exposed bricks are acting like atmospheric sponges and I doubt whether I will ever get the moisture out of them particularly if I do try and consolidate the faces. Bit of a Catch 22. Would it be best if I just cut them out and replaced them rather than waste time trying the save them? The inglenook already looks like a jigsaw puzzle made up of 10 different puzzles in one so I can't do any harm on the looks front!.

The current defrassing thread got me thinking although that is probably happening at a much slower rate.

 

[middi]

If soft red bricks are spalled, unsightly, or even more dangerous such as structurally not sound, there are no short cuts to the solution. The bricks need to be removed and replaced with reclaimed or new similar bricks.
The job is laborious and slow. That is restoration.
Yes, there will be a slight difference in the looks of the facade but if this is correctly done by using similar bricks and repointing the existing bricks it will look fine and totally acceptable in the restoration fraternity. Thre is no other way.

Good luck

Middi

 

[Zebra]

I've nothing like middi's breadth of experience but I know that's what I did. I found some very damaged soft spongy bricks in my house, most particularly in the chimney where it joins the house and I did exactly that, took them out and replaced them. In some places where I've replaced a brick without repointing the entire area, you can see the brick I've replaced because the mortar looks different on all four sides. Where I've had to repoint the entire area anyway, you can't tell which bricks are the replacements.

 

[MdB]

Is there any easy way of deciding when a brick is past its best or when it is good for another 150 years?

I took the chimney off the wall I'm working on at the moment as I didn't want it falling on my head. I carried a hammer and bolster up the ladder but didn't need it. I just picked the bricks off the top as there wasn't much holding them together. Some of the bricks just disintegrated so those are shot but others look like that they are ok. I am though worried that trying to reuse the nominally good ones is a bit of a false economy as their life is likely to be short. On the other hand, I don't to replace fabric that isn't necessary.

 

[88v8]

If bricks are underfired in the kiln, this will have a detrimental effect on their strength, waterproofness (is that a word...?) and durability. At worst, they will fail during construction (Honeywood), otherwise later... 150 years. ....
Yes, accept them as a 'feature' or cut them out.

How does one know what's good & what's not.... experience, I suppose.
I guess we can all tell when a brick or tile (same problem same reason) is shot, but given a selection of bricks in various states of degredation, where does one draw the line... ask three people get three answers. If you have a good stock of spares, err on the side of caution and perhaps use the more marginal elsewhere such as garden walls.

Ivor

 

[tobydog]

Thanks for the views. The duff bricks will definitely be going. They were disappearing from the inside of the inglenook at an alarming rate but now their faces on the outside of the inglenook are going as well so they are clearly completely shot through.

I have quite a few reds available from an earlier demolition although some of the good ones are already earmarked for the plinth.

I'll need to be careful because the back of the inglenook was lime rendered a couple of years back when the cement came of and I don't want to punch a whole through that accidently. I'll take it very easy although it might have to wait a few months until I finish the plinth otherwise Mrs. T will not be happy. I recklessly promised that our old kitchen would be a nice cosy living / dining room by Christmas. That's the one promise she did believe :roll: .

 

[middi]

Just remember that " a promise" is just an honourable intention. It does not encompass the fact that in the meantime you may be run over by a bus, or worst still, you may be halfway through the course of a restoration project whereby you are more likely to be hit by a bus than finishing the project by the time you promised.
You have to explain this to Mrs T in such a way that she will refrain from uttering the word " divorce". If you are capable of achieving this your restoration will be a piece of cake :wink:

Middi

 

[michael]

If you do take the crumbling bricks out, it might be worth keeping them and breaking them up into a powder. A few years ago, learning a trick from a builder, I repaired a couple of defaced bricks by reforming the face with a sand /hydraulic lime mix and then blowing a large trowel full of brick dust onto the reformed face whilst the lime was still wet. Go back to the repaired brick face a week or so later and gently brush off any excess brick dust that hasn’t adhered to the lime with a soft paint brush. Not the perfect solution for large areas but good for the odd brick here and there as it camouflages in quite well. If used for an outside repair, it made need redoing after a few years. Sounds like your bricks are too far gone and too numerous for this solution but the brick debris could be saved for future minor repairs. Certainly a less arduous solution than either turning bricks around within the wall or brick replacement.

 

[tobydog]

Thanks for the hint. As you say though, most of the bricks in question are too far gone to save although there are a couple of individuals I could have a go on. I know it's been used as a reference before but our inglenook is a bit like Trigger's broom!